making sense of the tragedy on the college campus all too familiar. we are learning more about a police officer shot and killed while police are saying very little about the man who pulled the trigger. plus sentencing day. today the final chapter in the corruption investigation in prince george's county. >> good morning and welcome to news 4 on this friday. i'm pat lawson muse sitting in for eun yang this morning. >> good morning to you. i'm joe krebs. let's take a live look outside this morning. we had an almost full moon all night long. it was gorgeous with clear skies. 38 degrees right now here in the nation's capital. here's tom to take a look at our forecast. >> there is a live picture of that moon, which will have it partially obscured by the earth's shadow predawn tomorrow morning. we may have enough of a clear sky to see a partial lunar eclipse tomorrow morning right before dawn. it's the center of the country

that folks will see a total lunar eclipse early saturday morning. right now around our region, the moon is illuminating the frost. i saw a sparkling sort of silvery frost under that moon light before i left the house earlier this morning. right now 35 cold degrees at reagan national. that's one of the warm spots. elsewhere, we are below freezing. we have frost all the way from the mountains to atlantic beaches. right near the bay waters, a little bit above freezing. most locations in the mid and upper 20s, including montgomery, fairfax, prince george's, and arlington county and the district of columbia. and the view from face showing a clear sky. we've got clouds increasing in the west and northwest. by sunday near 4:00. and by noontime the upper 40s. by midafternoon may hit the low 50s. a look at your friday evening planner at 6:11. here's a look at traffic.

>> good morning. i have report of an accident, this one in maryland, new hampshire avenue and piney branch road. i'm checking cameras in that area. i'm not seeing any major problems for you as you make your commute right now. this was a red light in there starting to flow. traffic is moving quite nicely. i'm going to keep watching this for you and see if i can find that accident on camera. i am seeing delays on i-95 in virginia. your first set of delays start out around centerville. as you make your way towards fairfax county parkway, these delays continue as you make your way on i-95. not seeing any delays on 395 north or south. now back to you both. >> thanks, danella. we're waiting for word this morning on the identity of the suspected gunman in the shooting at virginia tech. police say a man shot and killed a suspected police officer during a routine traffic stop and then took off running yesterday. that suspect was found shot to death then a short time later in

a different parking lot on campus. investigators aren't saying whether that gunman took his life, but they do say it was used to shoot the suspect. the police officer can be seen on camera, but authorities are not saying whether the actual shooting was captured by the camera. final exams scheduled for today have been postponed and a vigil is scheduled for tonight on the virginia tech campus to remember the fallen officer. news 4's shomari stone is live on the blacksburg campus with more. good morning, shomari. >> reporter: good morning. the mood here on virginia tech's campus is one of sadness. many of the students cried overnight. they had a vigil at the same area of the 2007 mass shooting, in which 32 people were gunned down. this is yet another shooting here on virginia tech's campus. and they're mourning over the tragic loss of this campus police officer. students held that candlelight vigil to pay tribute to the officer who died in the line of

duty. his name is derek crouse, a married father of five children. he had been on the force for four years. police zayed just after 12:00 the 39-year-old stopped a car in the cassell coliseum parking lot. then officers say a separate man, not connected to the stopped car, shot and killed officer crouse while he was sitting in his campus police car. >> i feel really bad. all our hearts are out to them and praying for them. >> the individual involved in this shooting incident fled the crime scene in the direction of a second crime scene that was located near the "i" lot, which is near the duck pond. >> that parking lot is also known as the cage. around 1:00 the officer found the suspect shot and killed. police say they found a gun near him. it is important to point out that authorities are telling us they did not fire the shot. so it's unclear whether the suspect died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

law enforcement officials believe this suspect stole a car from radford, virginia. however, they don't know if this car is somehow related to what happened yesterday. they're still trying to piece together the dots, trying to figure out exactly what happened. it is important to point out, however, that a dashboard camera on the police officer's car might shed some light, might explain what exactly happened yesterday. police have not released the shooter's name. they are still gathering details. they're trying to see if there's a connection between the suspect and officer crouse. perhaps officer crouse stopped the suspect in the past. we don't know exactly what happened here. one thing is clear, officials are expected to release more information today, and we'll bring it to you as soon as it becomes available on television and on our website, nbcwashington.com. live here at virginia tech in blacksburg, i'm shomari stone. "news 4 today." >> shomari, thanks very much. we are learning more this morning about the victim.

he is 39-year-old derek crouse, an army veteran and father of five. he joined the campus police force six months after the 2007 shooting spree at virginia tech. the university is being commended for its quick response to the shooting. the campus was locked down about seven minutes after the shooting was reported. the school sent out updates to students every 30 minutes. everything worked as it should have. >> all of the technology worked perfectly well, and the individuals responsible for the additional functional area have done an excellent job. i was very pleased with the results in terms of notification to the community. >> the federal government fined virginia tech for its slow response to the shooting spree on campus in 2007. in fact, university officials have been here in washington this week appealing that fine. stay with us on news 4 for the latest on the shooting at virginia tech. we'll be live from blacksburg throughout the morning. you can follow the latest developments on our website,

nbcwashington.com. 6:06 is our time. today former prince george's county council member leslie johnson will be sentenced for her role in her husband's corruption case. leslie johnson pleaded guilty to destroying evidence back in june. her husband jack johnson told her to tear up and flush a developer's $100,000 check down the toilet and stuff nearly $80,000 into her underwear. leslie johnson is due in court at 10:30 this morning, and she faces up to 18 months in prison. on tuesday of this week, former county executive jack johnson was steentenced to seve years and three months in prison for taking bribes. he was also ordered to pay $100,000 in fines. he apologized during the sentencing hearing and said he is, quote, haunted by his actions. >> our t[ baby coughing ]

[ coughing continues ] [ female announcer ] more pollution from power plants means more childhood asthma attacks. [ labored breathing ] there's technology that makes the air cleaner, but too many plants don't use it. we can't wait. epa must update power plant standards to protect our kids. [ baby coughing ]

[ zapping ] there goes dwayne's car. oh, man. there goes dwayne's house. whoa! whoa! and there goes dwayne. man, that thing does not like dwayne. [ male announcer ] state farm's got you covered.

nice landing. it was. [ male announcer ] get to a better state. it is friday, which means we want to put some money in your pocket. like our nbc 4 facebook page, and you can enter the chance to win cold hard cash in our 4g -- that's $4,000 -- friday giveaway. four people will win $1,000 tomorrow. next week one person will win the $4,000. the owinners' names will be posted tonight at 5:59. it's pretty cold out there on this friday morning. 6:11. tom kierein, tell us how frosty it is and how warm it's going to get. >> you'll need to be scraping frost off your windows this friday morning as temperatures in most locations down into the

mid and upper 20s starting off this friday morning. at reagan national on the waters of the potomac, 35 there as well as right near the bay generally above freezing. in the waters we're down near the 20s. bright moon getting into the western sky now, and it's nearly full. will be full tonight. we'll have a lot of clouds around obscuring it. sunrise at 7:15. by 9:00 we'll be above freezing. at noontime, upper 40s. we're going to soar to the low 50s by early afternoon. this evening for friday evening festivitie festivities, mostly down to 40. danella, how's traffic? >> good morning. ice is slowing you down. if you're traveling southbound sudley road past lee highway, ice is along the road here. here's a live look right now at chopper. you can see that it looks like these southbound lanes are completely taken away. i would avoid this area if

possible. police are on the scene. what i'm told is there's several incidents along sudley road right now due to the ice. so please use caution. again, if you can avoid this area, that would be safest. if you're traveling on hichlti- heading eastbound, start to go see congestion as you head towards the beltway. 66 not seeing any accidents inside the beltway. also seeing some congestion along i-95 heading out on the occoquan. again on i-95, not seeing any accidents at this time. now back to you both. time is 6:13. b

police sent a man to the hospital with life-threatening injuries after a shooting. it happened at the anacostia metro station at the 1100 block northeast. no word on what sparked the shooting, and no one tas taken into custody. we're still waiting to hear from police about the victim's identity. today a former school administrator to be sentenced for pleading guilty to child pornography. 29-year-old joshua myers was arrested after finding files that contained porn. he's facing 5 to 20 years in

jail. for the first time since former penn state coach jerry sandusky was arrested on sex abuse charges, his wife is speaking out. dottie sandusky released a statement saying, "we don't know why these young men have made these false accusations. we want everyone to know they are untrue. i continue to believe in jerry's innocence and all the good things he has done." one of the accusers told the grand jury that sandusky assaulted him in the basement of sandusky's home. the victim said he, quote, screamed for help, knowing that sandusky's wife was upstairs, but she never came down to help. sandusky's wife flatly denies any child was ever kept in the base many. sandusky posted bond yesterday after he was arrested on these new sexual abuse charges. sandusky is due in court on tuesday on charges he sexually abused eight other boys. new surveillance video has surfaced of dominique strauss kahn just minutes after he sexually assaulted a hotel

employee. the video was aired on french tv. it showed strauss kahn leaving the hotel, paying his bill, and hopping into a taxi. then the accuser, a maid from the hotel, appears to be acting out the attacks. there's then a bizarre sequence of two hotel workers hugging and dancing in the hall two minutes after reporting the incident to police. strauss kahn's lawyers say this is proof there was a conspiracy to bring him down while the accuser's lawyers say this is proof that strauss kahn did indeed sexually assault her. the stealth drone could hold valuable technology not yet known to america's adversaries. it has advanced technology that countries like russia and china do not have. even damaged parts from the downed drone could be used to speed up their technology. iran claims they shot down the drone, which is part of a cia reconnaissance mission. when it appeared on state tv, it

showed very little damage, and some experts believe it may be a mock-up. at the euro summit in brussels, the leaders of 23 european countries moved to tie their economies much closer together in a new treaty but failed to get the other european members, including britain, to join in. also new, the ratings agency moody's downgraded the french banks citing the recent eurozone crisis. asian and european stock markets were down following the summit. right now u.s. futures are up. now to decision 2012. this morning the republican presidential candidates are focusing on iowa before tomorrow's debate there. front-runner newt gingrich is leading by almost 30 points in some polls. opponent are stepping up personal attacks on the twice divorced former speaker of the house of representatives. today mitt romney, ron paul, rick santorum, and michele bachmann will hold town hall meetings in iowa. meanwhile, only gingrich and santorum will participate in the debate to be moderated by donald

trump. rick perry and michelle bachmann have joined the other candidates in declining the so-called trump debate. several prominent republican leaders have urged candidates to stip over the debate because they say it might be a media circus and would be a distraction from important issues. >> today maryland's university system board will vote on whether to merge the state's flagship campus with a campus in baltimore. the proposal would merge the university of maryland college park campus, which is home to 37,000 students with the university of maryland baltimore campus. that school has more than 6,000 students. it's also home to seven professional and graduate schools. maryland senate president mike miller says the merger would bring more research dollars to the states. today washington wizards players will arrive at the verizon center for the first day of training camp. training camps across the country along with free agency will open today. the league will hold a 66-game

season beginning on christmas day. the wizards will kick off their season on the 26th of december, the day after christmas, at home against the new jersey nets. tonight the washington caps will be looking for more than just a win at home. they're going to be collecting toys. the caps will be holding their 12th annual toy drive before their home game against the toronto maple leafs. fans can drop off new unwrapped toys to the "f" street entrance of the verizon center. the toy collection starts at 5:30. the game starts at 7:00. well, for the first time the annual army-navy football game will be played at fedex field. president and first lady -- the president and first lady will be there as well as the vice president and his wife. they'll be at the game. navy leads the all time series. kickoff is tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. this game's been going on for 112 years. the record so far is navy leading the series 55-49 with seven ties.

still pretty close after 112 years. pretty amazing. >> we'll see how it turns out tomorrow. and let's find out how today is shaping up with tom. good morning, tom. >> good morning. we are off to a cold start this morning, and water from the heavy rain on wednesday has remained. it has frozen up this morning. if your roadway looks wet, in fact, that could be ice. watch out for that this morning. we had so much rain, still taking a while for that to evaporate. right now mid and upper 20s most of the region. right near the bay waters and reagan national on the potomac, it's above freezing. elsewhere, mid and upper 20s. we've cleared out as we've had high pressure moving in overnight. there is a front with some clouds off far to our west and north. that will be arriving here later this afternoon. between now and then, we'll have a mostly clear sky with lots of sunshine. sunrise 7:15. sunset 4:46. tomorrow after some morning clouds clearing out, we'll be near freezing, and afternoon highs mid-40s. good for the army-navy game. great weather for the

skins-patriots sunday. cold, though. sunny. sunny and chilly weather into next week. danella, how's traffic? tom, as you mentioned, i'm start to go see ice. this is on sudley road past lee highway. several incidents along this roadway. chopper 4 is there live now. if you're traveling southbound, i am seeing delays. if you're trying to get to i-66, i would take lee highway. i would not get on sudley road at this time. several incidents along the roadway. i don't know if you can tell here. we have a car veered off of the roadway. again, ice all along this. please avoid the area. now back to you both. >> thanks, danella. >> thanks very much. 6:23 is the time. [ female announcer ] more people are using wireless devices...

in more ways than ever. and our networks are getting crowded. but if congress frees up more wireless spectrum... we can empower more people to innovate... putting momentum behind our economy. and we can reduce the deficit... with more than thirty billion dollars paid by america's wireless companies. it's simple -- more spectrum means more freedom. for everyone.

talk about a blockbuster. an hbo movie is apparently in the works to chronicle the life of council member marion berry. eddie murphy is slotted to play

him, and spike lee is on board to direct. several members of occupy d.c. crashed the set of a tv show. this video was posted on twitter. it shows dozens of extras packed in foley square. occupy wall street protesters say the park is the set of the upcoming "law and order special victims unit." producers have not confirmed that. coming up, two terrible incidents in virginia both involving law enforcement officers[ baby coughing ]

[ coughing continues ] [ female announcer ] more pollution from power plants means more childhood asthma attacks. [ labored breathing ] there's technology that makes the air cleaner, but too many plants don't use it. we can't wait. epa must update power plant standards to protect our kids. [ baby coughing ] ♪

[ multiple sounds making melodic tune ] ♪ [ male announcer ] at northrop grumman, every innovation, every solution, comes together for a single purpose -- to make the world a safer place. that's the value of performance. northrop grumman.

o0 c1 your home and auto policies and save. don't worry, tiny people. flo is a gentle giant. bundle home and auto at progressive.com. virginia tech tragedy. this morning they're trying to make sense of a deadly shooting. the suspect gunned down. the motive still a mystery. good morning. welcome to "news 4 today." i'm joe krebs. >> and i'm pat lawson muse.

eun yang is off this morning. it's a chilly morning. you'll need your gloves. we need a little warmth and your favorite heavy coat. >> and your favorite bulky sweater. you look comfortably warm. dress like pat today to stay warm and comfy. it is a frosty cold start this morning. right now at reagan national, we're seeing the first light of day there glowing on the eastern horizon, reflect in the waters of the potomac river. just to the right is reagan national. the temperature there at 35. the river is running high from all that rain that came down on wednesday. it is roaring, and the waters are muddy. we have still some standing water from all that heavy rain. that is frozen up this morning on some area roads. if you're driving along and it looks wet, that could be ice, in fact, probably is ice. it is at or below freezing most of the region from west virginia all the way to the atlantic beaches. montgomery, arlington, fairfax, prince george's counties in the mid and upper 20s. we're under a clear sky starting off with high pressure over the

region. there are some clouds in the midwest. that is along a front, a weak dry front that will be approaching us later today increasing our clouds. sunrise will be at 7:15 in about 45 minutes, and we'll have it getting above freezing until around 8:00 or 9:00 this morning. by noontime, upper 40s, middle of the afternoon, low 50s. quite a warmup from where we are now. a look at your evening planner in ten minutes. here's a look at traffic. good morning, danella. >> good morning. icy roads are slowing you down if you're traveling on sudley road. here's the view, sudley road at lee highway. earlier this road was shut down just a moment ago. now it is reopened. i just want to urge you, if you're taking this trip drive slowly as you make your way to make sure you're not running into icy patches. travel i-95 in virginia, this is the view at the occoquan lanes, really starting to slow down. i'll give you travel speeds. your delays start around prince william parkway.

to get to the beltway, your travel time is 25 minutes as you travel at 31 miles an hour. this morning we await to find the identity of the suspected beganman at virginia tech and try to find out why he did it. someone shot and killed a campus police officer during a routine traffic stop. investigators say a separate man not affiliated with that stopped car was the gunman. he was found a short time later shot to death in a separate parking lot. it's not clear whether he killed himself or whether he'd been wounded during an exchange of gunfire with that campus police officer. the virginia tech campus was locked down for several hours as police made sure the shooter was not still on the loose. even when the lockdown was lifted, students say they are still shocked and unsettled by what happened. >> it's heartbreaking. we're all just distraught about it all. we've had several encounters with the police officers, and they've always been polite and nice to us and try to help us.

so when one of them goes down, it's really hard. >> final exams which were scheduled for today at virginia tech have now been postponed. we're learning more this morning about the victim. he is 39-year-old derek crouse, an army veteran and father of five children. he joined the campus police force just six months after the 2007 shooting spree at virginia tech. >> the shooting came to mind for many people as events were unfolding. student seung-hui cho killed 32 people before taking his own life. his rampage began in his dorm and ended 2 1/2 hours later in an academic building. coincidentally, virginia tech officials have been here in washington this week to appeal a fine levied by the department of education for its slow response in notifying students about that first shooting in 2007. the university says it was pleased with its response to this tragedy. >> all of the technology worked individuals responsible for the additional functional areas have done a splendid job.

i was very pleased with the results that occurred today in terms of notification to the community. virginia governor bob mcdonnell is commending the school's response to yesterday's shooting. he's also offering his report to the virginia tech community. he released a statement that reads in part, "i have no doubt the students, alumni, and faculty of this proud institution will emerge today stronger and more united than ever before." stay with us on news 4 for the very latest on the shooting at virginia tech. you can, sks, follow all the latest developments on our website as well, nbcwashington.com. this morning a virginia state trooper and another man are in the hospital after a fight between them ended in gunfire. it happened yesterday afternoon on i-95 near mile marker 116 in caroline county. investigators say senior trooper michael hamer responded to a report of a man walking near the interstate. once he got to the scene, the trooper placed the man in the

back of his cruiser, and that's when there was some sort of struggle and gunfire erupted. hamer was shot in the leg. the suspect was also shot and suffered life-threatening injuries. police have not said whether the trooper was shot with his own gun. investigators are trying to determine why the man was walking along the interstate in the first place. he's not been identified. what makes the sleep number store different? the sleep number bed. with the sleep number bed, it's not about soft or firm. it's about support where you find it most comfortable. the magic of this bed is that you're sleeping on something that conforms to your individual shape.

on a traditional mattress, there is no adjustment. you get what you're buying that day. with our bed, you change the setting to something you like. this way, if you change your mind once you get home you can adjust it. wow! that feels really good. it's hugging my body. you can adjust it to whatever your needs are. if i'm in pain one day, in less than a minute i can get more support. your body changes over time. the bed can adapt with you. not only does it work for you today, but it's going to work for you 20 years from now. so whatever you feel like, the sleep number bed's going to provide it for you. this season, give yourself the gift of better sleep. right now, save 40% on our innovative limited edition bed set. but only while supplies last and only at one of our 400 sleep number stores nationwide, where queen sleep number bed sets now start at just $899.

"today" show coming up at 7:00. let's talk to ann curry to see what they're woerbging on. coming up on a friday morning here on "today," a retired fbi agent who disappeared in iran five years ago surface ins a hostage video sent to his family. his family still don't know who has him. also, the wife of former penn state coach jerry sandusky defends her husband and herself.

we'll tell you what she's saying in her first statement since sandusky was arrested. we've got news on the recovery of the young model we told you about. you might remember she was seriously injured after she walked into the spinning propeller of a small plane. her parents say she's already getting her spark back. we're going to hear from them coming up this morning. plus the hottest gifts for the holiday season for men, women, and kids. those stories, and we have oscar winner charlize theron in the house as we get started on a friday morning here on "today." joe, back to you. >> sounds like a full day. thanks very much, ann. have a great day. >> you too. turning now to the weather, it really turned cold out there. take a look at that sky. that's enough to warm you up, isn't it? >> that is gorgeous. >> good morning, tom kierein. >> good morning. time for weather and traffic early on this friday morning. i'm meteorologist tom kierein in stormcenter 4. yes, it is frosty cold this morning. you'll be scraping frost off your windshield this morning, and also watch out for whatever water remains from heavy rain on

wednesday. that's frozen up this morning. watch out for patchy ice from mt. pleasant to laurel, bladensburg, springfield, and laytonsville. we've got a mostly clear sky and a frosty cold start this friday morning. we'll have quite a bit of sunshine. clouds far west and north of us along that front should clear as the afternoon progresses. we'll be near 9:00 on 40. by noontime, upper 40s. ought to hit 50s by midafternoon. sunrise at 7:15. sunset at 4:46. we'll be back down into the low 40s by midevening this evening under a cloudy sky and midnight near 40. during the day tomorrow, a cold start. afternoon highs mid-40s. cold on sunday as well as on monday too. a look into next week. a warming trend on the way. we'll look at that in ten minutes. danella, how's traffic? >> good morning. if you're taking the outer loop of the beltway in montgomery county, you're start to go slow down just a bit on new hampshire avenue. those delays continue as you head towards georgia avenue. travel speed right now, 37 miles

per hour. if you're taking the beltway, this time in prince george's county, here's a view at central avenue. it is getting busier in both directions, but so far no major delays. that is a good sign. and on the rails, definitely seeing some delays along the brunswick east. first one, train number 874, your delay is 29 minutes. and train number 870 and 872 also on the brunswick east, a minor delay of nine minutes. i'm back in ten minutes with another look at your traffic. for now, back to you both. >> danella, thanks. our time now is 6:42. ahead, a cab driver carjacked. right now police are looking for

good morning and welcome back. today a former prince george's county council member will find

out her punishment for her role in a county corruption case. leslie johnson pled guilty in june. megan mcgrath is live outside the courthouse with more on what we can expect. >> reporter: good morning, joe. leslie johnson is due in court at 10:30 this morning. she pleaded guilty to destroying evidence, and under sentencing guidelines, she could get anywhere from one year to 18 months behind bars. it remains to be seen, though, whether her attorneys ask for something other than the sentencing guidelines, provide something less than the minimum sentence. that's what her husband's attorneys did earlier this week. leslie johnson arrested along with her husband, former county executive jack johnson, back on november the 12th. just weeks later on december the 6th, despite the charges against her, she took the oath of office and took her seat on the county council. as the evidence against her mounted, leslie johnson did eventually plead guilty to destroying evidence and eventually resigned from the council. key to the government's case against her was an audiotaped conversation with her husband as

fbi agents pounded on the door of her mitchellville home. jack johnson could be heard in that tape telling his wife to rip up a $100,000 check from developers and flush it down the toilet. he then told his wife to stuff the cash that was around in the house, laying around in the house, in her underwear. when she was searched by fbi agents, they found nearly $80,000 in her underwear. again, leslie johnson is going to be sentenced today, due in court at 10:30 this morning. joe, back to you. >> megan mcgrath reporting live. thanks very much, megan. prince george's county police are asking for your help to find a missing child this morning. 12-year-old rico edward singleton was last seen at walkerville middle school yesterday afternoon. he never went home after learning of a discipline matter at the school. singleton is described as 4'9" and weighs about 85 pounds. he w last seen wearing a black and royal blue sweater, khaki pants, and black tennis shoes. this morning police are

looking for a runaway couple after what could be called a cab jacking and a hit and run accident in montgomery county. it started at the bethesda medical center wednesday night, where, police say, a barwood cab picked up the couple. shortly after entering the cab, the man got out, opened the driver's door, and pushed the cabbie into the passenger seat. he then started driving up rockville pike, hit a car near old georgetown road, and continued on to a target store in rockville. police say the couple got out, walked into the target, and started shopping. police say the couple never paid the $18.50 fare. they're seen here in video. after shopping, they reportedly took another taxicab home. the air force admits it mishandled the disposing of remains of more than 200 men and women killed in action. the service said it dumped cremated remains of troops in a landfill in king george county in west virginia.

yesterday air force officials admitted gross mismanagement at its mortuary in dover, delaware. one woman, whose husband was killed in 2006, said the air force admitting the mistake was not enough for her. >> absolutely mortified. just i was so angry, and i felt betrayed by my -- by these people down at dover. >> the practice was discontinued in 2008. cremated remains are now given a burial at sea. the air force has opened up a hot line and e-mail account for concerned families and will apologize to families who were involved in this. d.c. mayor vincent gray tells news 4 that he has not been called before a grand jury investigating his 2010 campaign for mayor. the mayor stopped by our studios for nbc 4's "viewpoint" program, and he told tom sherwood the federal investigation of him and two d.c. council members is a serious distraction. >> of course nobody would want to be embroiled in this kind of

stuff, tom, certainly not one, let alone three. but i think one needs to look at where the city is. the city is doing very well at this stage. >> you can watch the rest of the interview with mayor gray on nbc 4's "viewpoint" sunday morning at 7:00 a.m. this morning investors around the world are closely monitoring a very important meeting, hoping that meeting brings a solution to the european financial crisis. cnbc's brian schactman has more on this. futures look good, strongly to the upside. we are still hanging on every word coming out of the summit in brussels. 18 member countries agreed to stronger rules to contain the debt crisis, but british prime minister david cameron really putting a fly in the ointment, looking for safeguards for the uk's financial markets. european markets a little bit

higher. asia lower overnight. here in the u.s. we get data on the deficit and consumer sentiment. stocks did fall sharply yesterday after the head of the european central bank said he has no plans for a stimulus program. that sent bond prices soaring in italy and spain. the nasdaq lost 52 to 2596. after years of scrimping and saving, americans treating themselves this holiday season. 36% of shoppers plan to buy a gift for themselves this year. that's up from 29% last year. the national retail federation says 60% of people have set aside cash for nongift purchases for themselves and for family members, spending an average of $130. i will have no problem doing that for myself as well this holiday season. i think i'm going to treat myself. >> all right. well, you should, brian. you should treat yourself. >> have a good weekend. you should treat yourself too.

>> i'm going to do that. thanks and have a great weekend. >> you too. >> well, we should all treat each other. today nbc 4 is sponsoring the share the warmth drive. you can help someone stay warm with your donation of a new or gently worn coat. we'll be holding a coat-a-thon from 9:00 a.m. to noon. you can drop the coat off at burke and herbert bank at clarn ton boulevard in arlington. all donated coats will be cleaned and distributed by the salvation army at the beginning of next month. >> those folks will certainly appreciate getting those coats. of course, this morning, you need one, tom. >> you need to dress like a lumberjack this morning if you want to stay comfortably warm at the bus stop. thankfully, the winds are calm, but the temperatures are cold. we are frosty cold on this friday morning. right now at reagan national, the predawn glow over the potomac, and it's 35 degrees there but thankfully a gentle wind. right now we are down into the 20s throughout most of the region from the mountains all the way to the atlantic beaches.

most locations low to mid-20s, including prince george's county, arlington, fairfax, and montgomery counties, and much of the district of columbia away from the potomac as well as areas away from the bay and the tidal potomac. right on the waters, it's a bit warmer. we've got a clear sky. high pressure pushing in will give us plenty of sun this morning into the afternoon. late afternoon, this deck of clouds associated with a front that will likely be moving in by late afternoon and overnight this friday night. i don't anticipate any precipitation. sunrise at 7:15. throughout the day today, it will be chilly but briefly into the low 50s by early afternoon. then clouds closing in this evening. sunset at 4:46. by midnight near 40 degrees. if you're heading to the games, fedex football this weekend. army-navy saturday at 2:30. skins-patriots, 61. highs low to mid-40s game time. as we get into monday, we'll have sunshine too. it's still going to be cold. beginning of next week, a bit warmer tuesday, wednesday, and thursday. and now, danella, how's traffic?

>> good morning. chopper 4 is live right now over an accident. this is i-95 heading north at the interchange. multivehicle crash taking up the right side of the roadway. i've got to show you the delays are pretty significant if you're traveling this route. if you're taking i-95 in virginia, here's a view at fairfax county parkway. your delays actually start out of dale city, and it's slow as you make your way towards the interchange. here's the travel speed about 14 miles per hour. to get from the occoquan to the beltway, that trip takes you about 44 minutes. if you're traveling i-270 in maryland, this is the scene at shady grove. you're clear as you make your way towards the beltway. no accidents to report at this time. now back to you both. >> danella, thanks very much. we are awaiting word this morning about the identity of the suspected gunman in the shooting at virginia tech. police say the gunman shot and killed a campus police officer during a routine traffic stop

and then took off yesterday. that gunman was found shot to death a short time later in a different parking lot on campus. investigators are not saying if the suspect took his own life. the same gun mapp was used to kill the officer and the suspect. the police officer's dashboard camera was rolling when the shooting took place. the shooter can be seen on camera. authorities aren't saying whether the actual shooting was captured on camera. final exams scheduled for today have been postponed and a vigil is planned for tonight on the virginia tech campus to remember the fallen officer. news 4's shomari stone is live this morning on the blacksburg campus to give us the very latest. good morning, shomari. >> reporter: good morning. the mood here is very somber. a lot of students have been crying. many of them having horrifying memories of what happened in 2007. many of those students weren't even here then. however, they do remember they watched on television unfold the 32 people who died here on campus.

this is a painful reminder of another tragedy here on virginia tech's campus. this morning we have new information. law enforcement officials believe that the suspect in this shooting, this latest shooting, stole a car from radford, virginia. however, they have not been able to connect the dots to see if the suspect's car is somehow involved in what happened yesterday. hours ago, virginia tech students cried at a candlelight vigil honoring fallen officer derek crouse. police zayed after 12:00 the 39-year-old made a traffic stop in the coliseum parking lot. then investigators say a separate man not affiliated with the stopped car stopped and killed officer crouse when he was sitting in his police sar. >> heartbreaking. >> our hearts are with the family of the fallen police officer, and we extend our sympathy and condolences. >> reporter: around 1:00

yesterday, police saw the suspect in another parking lot called the cage. moments later he was found shot and killed. police say they found a gun near him. they have not released his name. live on virginia tech's campus, i'm shomari stone. back to you in the studio. >> we're learning more about the victim. he is 39-year-old derek crouse, an army veteran and father of five. he joined the campus police force just six months after the 2007 shooting spree at virginia tech. we'll continue to follow this story all day long. watch us on news 4 and nbcwashington.com. that is "news 4 today." thank you for beginning

♪ [ male announcer ] from our nation's networks... ♪

...to our city streets... ♪ ...to skies around the world... ♪ ...northrop grumman's security solutions are invisibly at work, protecting people's lives... [ soldier ] move out! [ male announcer ] ...without their even knowing it. that's the value of performance. northrop grumman.